Rocking Chair
by bemj11
Summary: Molly Weasley and her family move into Number 12 Grimmauld Place. There they meet Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. How does Molly deal with living with a werewolf?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Obviously, I own none of this Harry Potter stuff

Chapter One:

The Weasleys had moved into Grimmauld Place at Dumbledore's request, shortly after the summer had started. A safe place would be needed for the Order of the Phoenix to meet, and someone needed to make sure it was ready. The house belonged to Sirius Black, who was busy rounding up the older members and would be back probably within a month.

The children had explored, claimed their rooms, and quickly made themselves at home in the 'haunted house.' Fred and George had found two rooms joined by a bathroom, and Ron had found a room that still had someone's things in it and walls plastered with posters, but one of the posters was a drawing of the Gryffindor seal, so Arthur had figured it would be fine. Ginny had found a room that also had its walls covered, but with drawings, and was empty of personal belongings save a bookshelf and an old locked trunk. Molly had not felt so at ease, and had tried to stay busy cleaning, cooking, etc.

The kitchen quickly became her refuge. It was the only normal part of this whole abnormal situation. Here they were, in an old manor that seemed to belong to no one, seemed to have been abandoned for years, and held numerous hints that Dark Wizards had been here, preparing for the eventual Order meeting.

Then she had found the rocking chair. It had been put up in a room to collect dust. Molly had cleaned it up and looked it over. It was beautiful, really. Simply made, it was plain, but had a hint of elegance about it. And of course, it seemed to have a story, though there was no telling what it was.

Why else would it have been abandoned, left to be forgotten? It had not been placed in such a lonely part of the house for no reason. It had been left there purposely, in the corner of the room.

It reminded Molly of the rocking chair she had left at home, and she sniffled, holding back tears. Why did all this have to happen? Why did You-Know-Who have to come back? She sat down on the chair, and relaxed. The chair had a soothing effect, and Molly felt that everything would somehow turn out right.

Molly had proceeded to convince Arthur to bring it to the empty space in the living room. Maybe he had sensed how important it was to her, and had quickly agreed to move it. It sat as if it belonged there, as if it had always been there. As if it were supposed to be a permanent part of the living room.

And gradually Molly got used, more or less, to the horrible place.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Harry Potter stuff isn't mine.

Chapter Two:

Then one morning _he_ appeared.

Sirius Black, the escaped convict.

Dumbledore had assured Arthur and Molly that he was innocent, but Molly wasn't so sure. And even if he were, he had spent twelve years in Azkaban. Was he even sane? Molly had had her doubts, and they had intensified the morning she had come downstairs to find him drinking tea in her kitchen, eating the biscuits she had made last night.

"Hi." He had said with his mouth full. He held up a biscuit. "Did you make these? They're delicious!"

"Yes, I did." Was all Molly could think of to reply.

"Since they're so good, I'll forgive you for messing up my kitchen and giving that boy-what's his name? Is it Ron? The one Harry's age. Anyway, for giving him my room. And for giving a _girl_ Moony's room. They are both going to have to move, you know. Anyway, the biscuits are good, so I'll forgive you for that stuff."

"Excuse me?" Molly asked. "Why would the children have to move?"

Black sighed dramatically. "Because the boy is in my room. It's been my room all my life, and will be mine until I either die or give it away, and I want it back."

"And Ginny?"

"Who? The girl? Oh, that's Moony's room."

Molly wondered what Moony was. "And?"

"And? It's his. She can't have it. If she keeps it, he'll have to get a different room and he doesn't like change, it makes him uncomfortable, even though he never lets anyone know and would never say anything. She'll have to move." He said matter-of-factly.

"Why?"

He stared at her in disbelief. "Well, he's going to use it, so she can't." He rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I guess I'll sleep in the bathtub tonight, but Ron needs to be out of my room by tomorrow night. Okay? Goodnight." And with that Black put his teacup in the sink and left the kitchen, with Molly staring after him. Whether or not he actually slept in the bathtub that night, Molly never found out.

Other than that incident, things went well for the next couple of days. Fred and George seemed to get on well with Black, too well in Molly's opinion, but as Arthur had said, the children had needed some kind of distraction. Ginny had been rather put out when Black had told her she had to switch rooms, and the two had stood scowling at each other until Molly had come upon them and hurriedly shooed Ginny away, but altogether things seemed to be going rather smoothly.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

One night several days later, Molly entered the living room to find an older man asleep in the rocking chair. He was thin and pale, and looked sickly and weary. He leaned against the back of the chair, with his legs pulled up to his chest, his arms wrapped around his legs. He had looked so out of place in a rocking chair that Molly had to stifle the urge to laugh, in spite of the fact that he shouldn't be here.

His eyes flew open, and he was up and out of the chair in seconds, his wand drawn and aimed at her. She froze, wondering who this man was. Was he a death eater? Or had he been sent by Dumbledore? He didn't look dangerous, but he seemed to think that he could hold his own against her.

He was confused to see her, that much was certain. He kept looking around the room, back at her, and then at her red hair. Then he spoke.

"Weasley?" His voice was hoarse, and barely above a whisper, as if he weren't used to speaking. He eyed her hair.

"Yes." She answered warily. How did he know who she was? Had he been sent after her family? No, he couldn't have been, or he wouldn't have been surprised to see her there. "Who are you?" She asked in what she hoped was a firm tone of voice.

"Where's Sirius?" The man asked uncertainly.

"In bed. Who are you?" The man stared at her, defiant. She met his gaze with one of her own infamous glares. After a few seconds, his eyes dropped to the floor.

"Remus Lupin." He said, putting his wand back in his sleeve. He sat back down in the chair, and ran his hand nervously through his graying brown hair.

"Molly Weasley." Molly replied. "What are you doing here?"

"I was supposed to meet Sirius here." He answered distractedly. "He knew I was coming."

Molly wondered if this man was telling the truth or if he had been sent to find Sirius by other forces. "Did he?" She wondered aloud.

Lupin nodded, rocking the chair slowly. "He must have forgotten." He muttered. "Figures."

Molly was sure she had heard the name Remus Lupin somewhere before. "Maybe you should come back in the morning." She suggested tensely.

He seemed to realize that he was making her nervous. "Don't worry. I'm not a death eater, and the Ministry didn't send me either. Albus Dumbledore sent Sirius to find me and tell me the Order was being revived." He was certainly free with his information, Molly thought. It wasn't wise. But he seemed to be telling the truth. "I could just wait here." He suggested calmly.

Molly nodded uncertainly. What was she supposed to do? Leave this man alone down here? Make him leave? How? What if he was telling the truth? What is he wasn't?

Lupin pulled his wand out again, looked it over, and held it out to Molly. "Here. If it will make you feel any better knowing I don't have a wand to do any damage with, take it." He seemed unruffled by her distrust.

She hesitantly took the wand. It was old, and there were several places in it that seemed to have chipped and been painstakingly filled so as not to be very noticeable. It was smooth, and well-cared for. Molly stared at it for a moment, then put it in her pocket. Then she began edging toward the stairs.

"Good night, then." Lupin said calmly, curling back up in the rocking chair.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

Of course, the next morning Sirius recognized him, as did the children. It turned out that he had taught Defense against the Dark Arts two years ago. She vaguely remembered Fred and George babbling on and on about the professor all thorough the following summer, how great of a teacher he was, how much he knew, how nice he was, on and on and on they had gone.

And Molly quickly found that she liked this quiet, soft spoken man. After breakfast he had immediately begun helping her clear the table, and actually offered to do the dishes, without magic. She thought that funny, and had laughed for the first time in days.

He had given her a quizzical look, and so she had asked. "I can do the dishes faster by magic, why do them by hand?"

He shrugged. "There isn't any hurry." He answered, unruffled. "I always found it gave me something to do."

Sirius had piped in from the living room, "Actually, Molly, Moony is easily entertained. He thinks washing dishes is fun."

At that, Fred and Weasley had popped in. "You're Moony?" Fred asked, excited. "The Moony?"

"As in Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs?" George added.

Molly had no idea what the boys were talking about, but Lupin seemed to, and nodded in reply. "Actually, though, if you're looking for information, you might want to talk to _Padfoot_." He nodded in the direction of Sirius.

"He's Padfoot?" Fred and George looked as if Christmas had come early. "Really?"

"Yes, he is." Lupin answered them. "And can probably tell you more than I can." Fred and George tried to nonchalantly excuse themselves and head for the living room, but they were obviously excited.

"Who is Moony?" Molly asked after the boys had left.

Lupin sighed, and absent-mindedly picked up a dish and began washing it. "I was, during my school years. It was a nickname given to me by Sirius and James our first year. By the time we graduated, we all had nicknames. Sirius was Padfoot, James was Prongs, and Peter-" He paused, swallowed, then continued. "Peter was Wormtail."

"James Potter and Peter Pettigrew?" Molly asked uncertainly. Lupin nodded. So he had been friends with all of them. Apparently, though, he had been forgotten when the Potters had been murdered. Molly couldn't imagine losing those people most dear to her and then being forgotten by the world.

"We used to get in a lot of trouble when we were at Hogwarts." Lupin continued. "More than George and Fred, if you can believe that." He said with a light chuckle.

"So you're the good Defense Professor?" Molly asked, trying to start a conversation. Lupin scoffed.

"Why would you say that?" He asked.

"Well, the year you taught was the only year I have ever heard five of my children agree on anything in regards to a professor and had that agreement be on something good. You had them all quite impressed, from Percy all the way down to Ginny. The twins thought you were great, and Ron didn't argue with them. _That _is no small feat. You must have done something good."

He might have been blushing at that, but he was so pale she couldn't be certain. He was terribly thin, she noticed, and looked exhausted, just as he had the night before. He also looked rather ill.

Molly wondered if she should ask if he were alright, but she had only just met the man, and it might be something he didn't like to talk about. She would ask Sirius later, she decided firmly.

"That didn't take very long, did it?" Lupin asked, handing Molly a glass. Confused, she looked down at the sink and realized she had been rinsing dishes as he washed him, and that they were now finished.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

Molly met a lot of people that week, it seemed. The very next day Molly went into the living room to see Sirius glaring angrily at a tall, sallow looking man with greasy black hair. The man was dressed in black, and was returning Sirius' glare.

"Where is Lupin?" The man snarled.

"Why?" Sirius countered.

The two stood in silence, glaring at each other until Ginny Weasley entered the room.

"YIPE!" She cried, and the man spun around to stare at her. She turned red and looked at the floor. "I mean, hello Professor Snape." She mumbled.

So this was Professor Snape. The man who had given numerous detentions to all of her children, including even a few to Percy. The Professor Ron regularly referred to as a bat. Now Molly understood why. She forced a small smile.

"Professor Snape?" She asked. The man rolled his eyes. Apparently politeness was not important to him. "I'm Molly Weasley. May I help you?" She asked him.

"Yes." Snape replied with a sneer. "If you could convince Black here to call his mutt down, Dumbledore sent me to speak with him."

"His mutt?" Molly wasn't aware that Sirius had had a dog.

"Lupin." Snape snapped.

"Oh." Molly wondered why Snape would refer to Lupin as 'Sirius's mutt.' She turned to Ginny. "Do you know where he is, dear?" She asked.

"He's in his room." Ginny had replied, still looking at the floor.

"Would you go get him, dear?" Molly asked her.

Ginny sighed. "Yes, mum." And made a break for the stairs. As she left, Sirius and Snape resumed glaring at each other. It was a relief when Ginny returned with Lupin.

"Snape." Lupin seemed surprised. "What brings you here?" He, at least, remained polite.

Snape scowled. "Dumbledore."

"Oh." Lupin replied, as if that had actually been an answer. "Why?"

"He wanted me to give you this." He pulled his hand from his cloak, holding a goblet that seemed to be smoking.

Lupin looked surprised-no, shocked. "Thank you." He said, taking the goblet.

"It was Dumbledore's idea." Snape said with a growl.

Lupin lifted the goblet to his lips and drank whatever was inside. Then he shuddered, and handed the goblet back to Snape, who took it as if it were contaminated with some foul disease and left after shooting one last glare at Sirius, who returned the favor.

"What was that and why did you actually drink something that Snape gave you?" Sirius asked Lupin once Snape had gone.

"I'll explain later." Lupin said, shooting a glance at Molly. He probably hoped she wouldn't notice.

"Right." Sirius agreed, his eyes following Lupin's but breaking away from Molly at the last second. "Later." Lupin headed back upstairs, and Sirius followed. Ginny looked at her mum, shrugged, and went on her way.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

Lupin wasn't at dinner that night. When Molly asked where he was Sirius simply replied that he wasn't feeling very well.

"Should I take something up to him?" She asked, and Sirius started.

"No!" He said quickly, then calmed himself. "No. He just needs some rest."

The children were giving them strange looks, so Molly decided not to pursue the matter until after dinner.

"Is something wrong with him?" Molly asked when she and Sirius were alone.

Sirius twitched. He seemed kind of jumpy tonight. "Well, sort of." He answered.

"What? Is there something I can do?"

Sirius laughed. It was a hollow sound, with no humor involved. "No, nothing." He sounded sad. Then he forced himself to smile. "It's no big deal. He's just never been very healthy, and gets sick easily. He'll be fine tomorrow." Sirius didn't believe what he was saying either, but his eyes were begging Molly not to ask any more questions, so she dropped it.

Suddenly, from upstairs, Ginny screamed. Loudly. Molly took off running up the stares, hoping frantically that she would get there in time. What was wrong? The screaming stopped abruptly, and Molly quickened her pace. She was dimly aware of Sirius right behind her as she ran.

The two of them reached the top of the stares, ready for action, and stopped. Ron had his hand clamped over Ginny's mouth, and both of them stood still. They were staring at a wolf.

It was big, and grey, with yellow eyes. Its fangs and claws were easily visible, and it also stood still, staring at the children, as if waiting for them to make the first move.

Sirius stood beside Molly, waiting, like her, for something to happen. Then Percy and the twins showed up.

The twins froze, but Percy drew his wand. "Get away from my sister!" He shouted, pointing his wand at the wolf.

"Wait!" Sirius and Ron yelled at the same time.

"Why?" Percy asked. He didn't lower his wand.

"It's okay!" Ron said. "It's Professor Lupin!"

Percy looked confused. "I know that!" He replied angrily.

"He didn't do anything to her!" Ron yelled.

Percy glanced uncertainly at Ginny, who pulled free of Ron. "He just startled me." She whispered, staring at the floor again.

Percy lowered his wand, and the wolf began moving towards Molly, whose head was spinning. This wolf was Lupin? How? Why? How did Ron know it was Lupin? Was it dangerous? Could it have hurt Ginny? She flinched as the wolf approached, but it passed her and ducked behind Sirius, who patted it roughly on the head.

"I think we have some explaining to do." Sirius said to the wolf, and Molly was almost certain that it nodded in reply. "Shall we head for the living room?"

And so Molly learned that Remus Lupin was a werewolf


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven:

It blew her mind, really, that Dumbledore would have let a werewolf teach. Werewolves were, after all, dangerous creatures. It wasn't surprising, she supposed, that Sirius would make friends with a werewolf, but the fact that all her children had already seemed to know that Lupin was a werewolf did astonish her. Even more surprising was the fact that aside from the fright with Ginny, the children didn't seem to mind.

Of course, he had been their teacher for a year, and no one had been hurt. And he hadn't shown any signs of hostility while here, save for that first night, but that was probably for his own protection. And last night no one had been hurt. But still…

"Sorry about last night, Professor." Ginny said at breakfast the next morning. "I left my potions book in your room when I moved out, and tried knocking last night, but since no one answered I figured you weren't there. I didn't realize it was the full moon."

"It's quite all right." He replied easily. "No harm done."

The twins sat silently, exchanging glances, and Molly knew they wouldn't be quiet much longer. They probably had about a hundred questions they were dying to ask the werewolf, and were trying not to because Molly was sitting there.

Finally the temptation was too much for them. "So do you turn into a wolf every full moon, Professor Lupin?" Fred asked.

"And are you color blind, like dogs?" George interrupted before Lupin could answer.

"How long have you been a werewolf?"

"Did you take that-what was it? Some kind of potion?-last night?"

Lupin held up his hands for the twins to be quiet, and they stopped talking. "First of all," he said firmly, "since I am no longer a professor, it's just Remus. Yes, I do transform every full moon. While transformed I am color blind, and sometimes before and after the full moon for a bit. I was bitten as a small child. Yes, it was a potion, and yes, I did take it. It is called the wolfsbane potion, and that is what Professor Snape brought me yesterday." He answered all these questions calmly, as if he were used to them.

"How old were you?" George suddenly asked. "When you were bitten, I mean?" Sirius turned to stare at George, as did Molly's other children. Even Fred gave George a strange look.

"George!" Molly scolded. "That's none of your business."

"Sorry, Professor." George mumbled.

"Don't worry about." Lupin replied, but Molly thought he looked relieved that the discussion was over. He stood up and cleared his spot at the table. Putting his dishes in the sink, he turned to Sirius. "I have a couple of things I need to look into today." He said. "I'll be back later. Do you need anything?"

Sirius looked thoughtful. "A copy of the Daily Prophet would be nice." He said after a moment.

Lupin nodded, and with a quick, "Have a good day." was gone.

The children finished breakfast and left, and Arthur left for work, leaving Molly alone at the table with Sirius.

"Don't get up." Sirius said before Molly could escape. "We need to talk."

"About what?"

"Moony." Molly sighed. Had it been obvious that she had distrusted the werewolf? But honestly, what else was she supposed to do?

"What about him?"

"You don't like him," Sirius said calmly, "because he's a werewolf."

Molly didn't know what to say. He was right. Had it shown that much?

"Don't worry, it isn't that bad. You're just concerned, and you should be. He's staying in the same house as you and your family."

"Are you saying I shouldn't trust him?"

Sirius smiled. "No. I'm saying I understand why you're concerned. But that concern, in this case, is entirely misplaced. Your family is, if anything, safer with him here."

"But-"

"Yes, yes, yes," Sirius interrupted her impatiently, "he's a werewolf, a blood thirsty monster who preys upon innocent humans when they least expect it." He snorted. "Yeah, right. Moony isn't capable of hurting anyone intentionally. The only time you have to worry is on the full moon, and now, thanks to this new wolfsbane potion, you don't even have to worry about that."

Molly was silent. She didn't know what to say. Somehow the assurance of an escaped convict, however innocent he may be, did nothing to allay her fears.

"Look, I spent seven years with him at Hogwarts. seven years in the same dorm, with us occasionally fighting, getting on each other's nerves, and who knows what else. And none of his dorm mates ever ended up dead or bitten or mauled. And he taught at Hogwarts for a year, came into contact with every student, and not one of them have been hurt. Furthermore, if ever the opportunity to attack someone presented itself, it was last night. And believe me, if he had been going to hurt your little girl, it would have happened before Ron could even get to her. And then he would have turned on Ron. However, he didn't, they're fine, and if that doesn't convince you you can talk to Dumbledore."

"Convince me of what? That he's _okay_?"

"No." Sirius looked surprised. "Convince you to give him a chance. To try to see that he's not just some dark creature."

Molly blinked. Lupin hadn't proven himself to be untrustworthy so far. If anything, he had done an excellent job so far of proving the opposite. Everybody deserved a chance to prove themselves, didn't they? With Lupin she would just have to wait and see.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight:

And she waited, albeit awkwardly. For the next several weeks they did not share any conversation other than "Pass the sugar, please," and "Excuse me," and things like that. And the children had been giving her accusing looks since they had noticed her reluctance to trust him.

Ginny, however, had, if anything, started spending more time with him since her initial fright. She seemed completely recovered from the terror that had taken her that night.

"He's really rather nice, mum." Ginny tried to explain. "And it's safer that way. Fred and George don't dare try anything when he's around, not since they heard what happened with Peeves and the chewing gum."

That half explanation (her children were so good at giving them) did nothing to allay Molly's fears. Not that that mattered; she simply couldn't keep all of her children from being near him, especially since he seemed to be living here now.

Molly wasn't exactly sure how that had happened either, but he seemed to always be there, and joined them regularly for an extremely awkward dinner.

He sat next to Sirius, where he always sat, and Ginny usually beat the others to the seat on the other side of him. Sirius found the Weasley race to sit beside the werewolf amusing. Molly, however, did not.

"I didn't realize you were such a popular guy, Moony." Sirius said one evening several weeks after the discovery, as he watched the twins try to block each other's access to the seat beside the werewolf and Ginny slip silently into it and grin.

He simply shrugged in response.

Sirius tried again. "Exactly when did this happen, might I ask?"

He rolled his eyes, still refusing to answer. Sirius frowned for a minute, then slapped him in the back of the head.

Molly recoiled in horror as the werewolf turned and tackled Sirius. She and her children watched in shock as the two rolled around in the floor, somehow managing not to hit the table legs.

Molly recovered and drawn her wand. "Enough!" She shouted, pointing her wand primarily at the werewolf.

Both froze faster than Molly had thought possible, and Sirius shoved the werewolf behind him, out of Molly's reach. Both were breathing hard.

"What's your problem?" Sirius glared at her.

"I beg your pardon?" Molly asked, not sure what had just happened.

"Did you honsetly think-" Sirius began angrily, but the werewolf cut him off.

"What else would she think, Sirius?" He said almost inaudibly. He stood and faced Molly. "My apologies, Mrs. Weasley. If you will excuse me." He nodded to her children and left the room.

"I knew what I was doing." Sirius muttered furiously at her. "Thanks." He stormed out of the room after his friend.

Molly simply stood there, stricken, as her children had tried to pretend they hadn't seen anything.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine:

The next afternoon Molly found Ron playing chess with him, while Sirius watched and insulted his friend.

"Man, you must be out of practice, him whupping you like this, Remus!" Sirius was laughing.

"Shut up, Sirius." He returned calmly enough.

"I mean, has it been that long since you last played?"

"Fourteen years, Sirius, and you aren't helping any." That retort was less friendly.

Sirius was silent for a moment, watching. "Sheesh Remus, I could do better than that." He said at last, unable to keep silent any longer.

"Then why don't you just finish the game for me?" He was practically snarling this time.

Sirius studied his friend's face closely. "Fine." He said, his tone surprisingly kind. "You don't mind, do you, Ron?"

Ron looked from Sirius to the werewolf and back again. "I was so close to beating him, but sure. Do you want to start over or just pick up where he left off?" He asked as the werewolf left the room.

"I'll play from where he left off. You'd probably beat me anyway, and this way I'm probably less likely to make a fool of myself."

Ginny looked up from her homework. "Then why were you making fun of Professor Lupin?" She asked.

Sirius looked thoughtful. He moved a piece, then turned to face Ginny. "What now?"

She repeated her question for him.

"Oh, well, I always make fun of Remus. Whether it's true or not." He checked the time as he answered her.

"Checkmate." Ron said, quickly, so as not to interrupt the story he sensed coming.

"This is nothing compared to the time he refused to go out with this girl-"

"Why did he do that?" Ginny interrupted.

"Because she was making rounds." Sirius said absent-mindedly. He continued before Molly could protest to his choice of words. "At any rate, it was decided, by the student population at large, that he must be weird to be the only boy to turn her down. So James and I-" He stopped to chuckle- "spread it around that he was gay-"

"Sirius Black!" Molly roared.

He turned to stare at her. "What?"

"That is not appropriate!"

"But we did." Sirius argued. "And best of all, we had the entire school convinced for about a month."

He checked the time again and excused himself. Molly followed him angrily up the stairs, leaving the children to deal with thoughts of a gay werewolf.

"Sirius Black!" She caught up with him halfway up the stairs leading to the floor with his room.

"What?" He asked, his voice harsh and impatient.

"You know perfectly well what." She snapped, and he looked annoyed.

"Right, look sorry, why don't you yell at me in the morning." And he tried to escape.

"Now, you look here-" She began, but Sirius cut her off.

"No, you look. Now is not a good time. I will be perfectly glad to listen to any complaints you have tomorrow. Now, good night, Molly." He said with a note of finality.

He turned and proceeded to go up the stairs. Molly stared for a moment before following. No one walked away from a Prewitt.

He slammed the door to the room that wasn't his. Ignoring this, she yelled for him to come out, even pounding on the door.

There was been no answer. She tried the door to find it locked. "Alohamora." She said. They were going to finish this conversation tonight. She was tired of him constantly taking liberties with her children, and it was going to stop here.

She turned the door, cracking it slightly, and froze as she heard Sirius talking softly, telling stories of bygone days.

Before she could wonder if he truly had gone mad, she had heard a whimper that could not possibly be him.

Sirius heard it too, because he had stopped his anecdote. "It's okay, I'm here." She heard him say ever so softly.

Molly was just beginning to wonder what exactly was going on when a scream came from inside the room. Without thinking, she flung open the door, wand drawn, flicked on the lights-

And realized that Sirius and the werewolf were the only two people in the room, sitting on the floor, up against the wall.

He didn't move, but Sirius was up in a heartbeat. "What do you think you're doing?" He demanded, his eyes flashing dangerously.

Molly was flustered. "I-I heard something scream." She said.

Sirius' eyes darkened. "Get out." He said.

"What-" Another scream rent the air, and there was a thud as the werewolf fell and hit the floor. Molly stared as he lay there, screaming, unable to do anything but lie there and shake as he slowly began to change.

Sirius regained control over himself, and dragged her out of the room, slamming and locking it behind him.

"Nice one." He snarled at her.

She simply stared at him in return, with no idea of what had just happened. "What?" She finally managed faintly.

"Now he's in there alone." Sirius was furious. Molly had no idea why, or what exactly that meant. "He's in there alone, during the full moon. I can't go in there now." He was obviously upset.

"I-I don't understand." She managed to get out.

Sirius sighed, and forced himself to calm down a bit. "Snape didn't come tonight. He was busy or something. He didn't bring the potion. I was going to stay with him, since he won't harm me in animagus form. Unfortunately, you came in as he started to transform, so I had to get you out. So now he's in there alone, since I can't really go back in without him getting out, which would be worse than him being alone." He glared at her, but seemed to realize that she hadn't meant to do whatever she had just done. At any rate, his anger faded and was quickly replaced by worry. "I'm going to get some tea." He said, heading back downstairs.

Molly turned to look at the closed door before following him.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten:

They sat and drank their tea silently until Molly finally gathered the nerve to speak. "Why was he screaming?" She asked, unable to get the image of the normally calm, reserved man lying on the floor, helpless.

Sirius laughed, a laugh entirely without amusement. "Do you think it's pleasant to change from a man to a wolf?" He asked bitterly.

"But when you-" He cut her off.

"When I change from human to dog, it's different. I change of my own free will, if nothing else. Not to mention there would probably be even fewer animagi running around if it were immensely painful."

"Does it help for you to be with him?" She asked, wondering what significance her actions held for the man upstairs.

Sirius didn't answer her for several minutes, didn't meet her eyes. When he looked up, they were haunted, but without the deadened look that usually accompanied it. Instead was sadness, frustration, and worry. "Yes." He finally answered. "It helps."

"How?"

Sirius hesitated. "It keeps him…" he trailed off, as if searching for the right word, "calmer. It keeps him from being as hurt." The last part came out in a mumble, she almost didn't catch it.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You'll see." He grimly replied.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven:

The next morning she was surprised by yet another scream, this one more of shock than anything else. She came into the living room to find a pale Ginny staring at a limp form lying on the couch.

Sirius came charging into the living room, looking ready to kill. Then he spotted Ginny standing there and breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing. He was still irritated, and it showed in his voice. "What are you yelling about now?"

Ginny was still staring. "What happened to Professor Lupin?" She asked, her voice slightly higher than usual. "Is he okay?"

Sirius smiled sadly. "The full moon happened. He'll be fine. Off with you."

She reluctantly left the room, and Sirius noticed Molly. His expression darkened. "If you're not going to mind your own business, at least make yourself useful. You know that drawer in the kitchen you can never get open?" She nodded, and he continued. "Tap the handle once with you wand and say, 'marauders forever'. There should be some bandages and stuff there. Go get it."

She did so, as silly as it had sounded, and the drawer did open, revealing what seemed to be a rather advanced first aid kit and a bunch of chocolate. She grabbed what she had been told to get and went back to the living room to find Sirius looking over his friend.

She stopped at the door, but Sirius noticed and grunted for her to come over. She noticed that the werewolf was wrapped in an old worn blanket of debatable color.

"Put it down." He nodded toward the stuff. "And help me." He had begun unwrapping the blanket around his friend.

Molly gasped as she saw a deep gash in the man's side. The she noticed numerous other scratches (although the word scratch hardly fit) and bruises on his arms, chest, and back. One of his wrists was covered in blood.

"What happened?" She asked in horror.

Sirius snorted derisively as he started to clean up his friend. "The full moon." He replied, and when he realized she didn't quite get, he explained. "During the full moon, Remus does indeed transform into a bloodthirsty monster, which is not to say he's like that the rest of the time. If they can't satisfy that thirst for blood through a victim, then they turn on themselves."

Molly gasped as she realized what that meant. "You mean that he chooses to do this to himself-" She stopped, unable to complete that thought.

"Rather than attack others, yes." Sirius finished for her. Every full moon is like this without that wolfsbane potion."

"If you had been in there-"

"It wouldn't have been this bad." Sirius said simply.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve:

"There." Sirius said as they finished patching up his friend. "He'll probably sleep for the rest of the day. I don't really want to move him…"

"I'll make sure the children don't come in here." Molly offered.

Sirius waved a hand dismissively. "They won't bother him. He wouldn't wake up if the twins decided to start jumping on him. I was wondering if it would bother you for him to stay there."

She stared, not certain she was hearing properly. "Why does it matter? When since you got here have you cared what I thought?"

"Well, I don't care whether you mind him here or not." He replied shortly. "But he wouldn't want you to be in a position that makes you uncomfortable, so I'm asking so that when he tries to kill me for bothering you guys later I can say I asked and you didn't mind. That is, if you don't." Molly got the impression that there wasn't a whole lot Sirius wasn't willing to do for his friend.

"No. I don't mind." She said softly, leaving the room. She had a lot to think about.

And Remus slept through the day, oblivious to Ron and Ginny's argument, Order members coming and going, and snide comments from Professor Snape (Molly was beginning to understand why her children spoke of him with such blatant disrespect). He lay on the couch where Sirius had left him, not moving even the slightest.

Dinner was somewhat quiet. It was the first meal without Remus since he had arrived. The children ate, quiet and anxious, every once in a while shooting nervous glances towards the living room. Arthur came home from work and asked what was wrong, and Sirius told him Remus was just tired from the night before.

Then a soft thump sounded in the living room, and Sirius bolted from the table. The Weasleys were silent as the sounds of Sirius talking drifted through.

He was speaking softly, almost so they couldn't hear him. "Are you sure you should be up? I mean, that was a nasty number you did on yourself, Moony." Molly heard no reply, but one must have been given, because Sirius gave a soft chuckle. "Of all the things to call me you settle for that? That's pretty lame even for you, Moony. Are you sure you can make it to the table? You nearly fell over there."

And Sirius entered the dining room and sat back down at the table, followed by Remus Lupin.

The man looked terrible. He was white, even for him, and the dark circles under his bloodshot eyes were more pronounced than they had been. His eyes still held a trace of yellow from the night before. He looked as if the simple act of walking over to his seat at the table were a fierce battle that cost him greatly to manage.

He dragged himself over to the table and slumped into his seat between Sirius and Ginny. Sirius wordlessly fixed him a plate of food and set it down before him. He then got up and went into the kitchen, leaving a heavy silence.

Remus seemed not to have noticed the Weasleys and set upon his food as if he hadn't eaten in days. By the time Sirius had come back with a mug of steaming tea, Remus had cleaned his plate and started on seconds.

"Hungry?" George asked innocently. Fred snorted.

"Are you feeling better, Professor?" Ginny asked worriedly.

"A bit." He managed to answer, his voice hoarse and raspy so that his reply was not more than a whisper.

"George thought you were a corpse." Fred offered. "He wanted to poke you to see if you were alive."

"Fred!" Molly snapped "George!"

"But I didn't actually do it!" George protested.

"Mum thinks you're not being sensitive enough." Ginny interjected. "Because, you know, Professor Lupin might be embarrassed or something about the full moon last night." She paused. "Or that we saw him passed out half dead on the couch. Or the scratch marks on his face."

"Ginny!" Molly hissed as Remus idly lifted his hand to his cheek, tracing the marks from the previous night.

He smiled, and winced. "It's quite alright, Molly." She stiffened as he called her that, though she could not have said why. He pretended not to notice. "Sirius here did the same thing once."

"You poked him?" George asked Sirius.

"Once." Sirius replied with a grimace. "It wasn't right after the full moon though, so he was still somewhat in touch with the world around him. Just not enough to realize who was poking him in the chest."

"What happened?" Ron asked, noting the smirk Remus was trying to hide.

"He picked me up and had me pinned to the wall in seconds. This was, what, second year, Moony?" Remus nodded. "Yeah, anyway, so he was like half my size the skinny little-" Remus cleared his throat and Sirius trailed off. "That was before we found out, though, so when he realized what had happened, he was absolutely horrified."

"And you thought it was funny to threaten to tell McGonagall if I didn't let you copy my homework." Remus remembered. Every word was an effort to get out, and Molly wondered why he was talking at all.

"Did you let him?" Ginny asked.

The smirk was back, and Remus nodded.

"You didn't!" Ron looked as if he couldn't imagine Remus doing such a thing. "I thought you were like Hermione!"

Sirius snorted. "So she's a stuffy book-reading nerd, then?" He asked. Seeing Ron's indignant look, he laughed. "If she's like him," he gestured towards Remus, "and he _is_ like that, I assure you, it's a compliment. But yeah, he let me copy his work. Of course, I found out later that he had written all the answers down wrong and corrected them right before he turned it in."

"Really?" Fred asked, impressed. "And you didn't see him?"

"Moony was always writing or reading something, so I didn't pay him any attention." Sirius defended himself. "I got him back, though, you know."

"How?" Asked George.

"Well, you see-"

Molly cleared her throat, interrupting the story. "That's quite enough. I've had enough of your wild stories, Sirius Black. I don't need you feeling their heads with this rubbish."

Sirius looked insulted, but Remus looked a bit relieved. "Quite right." He agreed, which surprised Molly. "She's right. It _is_ a lot of rubbish, you know." He told Sirius.

Sirius stuck his tongue out at the other man. "I'll just leave you here if you're going to be that way." He threatened.

"You wouldn't." Remus didn't sound particularly worried.

"I will. You'll have to sleep on the couch."

"Not the couch." Remus protested half-heartedly. "Whatever shall I do?" Not that it had sounded like a question.

"Why would Professor Lupin have to sleep on the couch?" Ginny asked, concerned.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Stop calling him that. It's weird. He looks old enough as it is. And none of that Mr. Lupin stuff either." He said.

"Now see here," Molly argued, "My children will address adults with proper respect."

Sirius made a face, which set her children to laughing.

"Besides," Ginny added curiously, once the laughter had died down, "what else would I call him?"

"Moony." Sirius said matter-of-factly. "Or Remus, if you prefer. Or Lupin, it's sort of respectful."

"Sort of." Remus echoed disbelievingly.

"Well, not." Sirius admitted as Remus stifled a yawn. "You ready for bed?"

Remus nodded, and the two got up, Remus quite a bit slower than Sirius. "I'll be back." He said.

"Where are you going?" Molly asked.

"Helping him up the stairs." Sirius nodded towards Remus. "You saw his ankle. He'd get halfway up and trip, fall down the stairs and crack his head open on the umbrella stand. Then Mum would have a fit, and we don't want that."

"Never mind my head." Remus muttered and Sirius smirked.

With that the two left the dining room.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen:

Sirius returned shortly, and, rather shockingly, wordlessly helped clean up as the children rushed to escape the same fate. Molly was too surprised to ask why, but after she had gotten over the initial shock, she guessed it had something to do with Remus.

And she was right. "You, know. He isn't a professor anymore. Silly to call him Professor Lupin." Sirius said as he had cleared the last of the dishes from the table.

"My children will be respectful to adults." Molly insisted.

"You don't seem to mind if they call me Sirius."

"That's, well, that's different!" Molly protested, flustered. It was true; she didn't particularly care if they had any respect for this man or not.

"Because he was their professor? Or because he isn't a worn-down, wretched-looking, haunted shell of a person that is no longer there?"

She stared at him in silence, wondering what exactly that was supposed to mean.

"Anyway, this professor nonsense that you encourage only serves to remind him that he no longer has a job and once again has to depend on one of his friends for help. It isn't good for his self confidence. Or his mood. It makes him gloomy." Sirius explained, just as conversationally as if he were talking about the weather.

"He doesn't have a job?" Molly asked, surprised. "Why ever not?"

Sirius stared at her, dumbfounded. "He's a werewolf. Duh. Think of your reaction when you found out, and you had already known him for a while. That teaching job was probably the first job he had managed to keep for more than a few months for who knows how long. And because of Snape-or as he likes to say, his carelessness-he was put in the position where he felt he had to leave."

"Professor Snape? Carelessness? What-"

Sirius interrupted, saving Molly from having to figure out exactly how to formulate her question. "I found Wormtail with Ron disguised as Scabbers, and dragged him out under the Whomping Willow into the Shrieking Shack-yes, there's a passage from one to the other. Harry and Hermione followed us, and Moony followed them, and Snape followed him. Without Snape's approval, we sorted out the whole mess and started back to Hogwarts with Wormtail in custody. Unfortunately, Moony had forgotten to take his potion in all the excitement, and transformed. Wormtail got away, Harry and I almost received the kiss," a shudder ran through Sirius, "I was captured, I escaped, Snape was furious, he told all the Slytherins the next morning, Moony was horrified by what could have happened, felt he had betrayed everyone's faith in him, and felt it wasn't safe-for the students-for him to stay. And so he left, and hasn't been able to find a job since, which is partly why I insisted he stay here, except he accepted cause he thinks I'll be terribly lonely here in the most ancient house of Black and wouldn't be able to handle it. And he's probably right." Sirius had viciously attacked the dirty dishes the muggle way while talking, just as he had mocked Remus for doing not so long ago.

Molly set to rinsing, and the worked in silence for several long, tense minutes.

"And furthermore, this Mr. Lupin nonsense is right-out." Sirius declared, the glint in his eyes daring her to argue.

She did, of course. "There is nothing wrong with addressing another person as Mister, Miss, or Mrs. It is a title of respect. And courtesy."

Sirius snorted. "Mr. Lupin was Moony's father. And he-well, let's say they didn't part ways on the best of terms."

"Why?" Molly asked. "I mean, why did they part ways? And when?"

Sirius looked thoughtful. "Moony last saw his dad the summer before we started our fourth year, shortly before he was arrested and thrown into Azkaban." Seeing Molly's surprised look, he added, "He was a death-eater, you know."

"I didn't." was all Molly could think to say. Why was Sirius telling her all this? So she would stop making the children be respectful? Or was there more to it? Why was he telling her such highly personal information about Remus? It didn't add up, and Molly said so. "I don't understand. Why are you telling me all this? Surely this isn't just about what the children call Remus. Is it?"

Sirius just shrugged. He finished the last of the dished without saying anything more. Then he began drying and putting the dishes Molly had rinsed away.

It wasn't until the last of the dishes were put away that he faced her and spoke. The twinkle in his eyes was gone, the haunted, dead look remained. He spoke softly, somewhat sadly. "I guess I noticed that you, at least at the beginning, tended to mother him."

"Mother-?" She started to ask, but Sirius continued.

"You treated him somewhat as if he were one of your children that needed looking after. Maybe you saw that he did, even if you didn't realize why at first. Anyway, you mothered him, for whatever reason, and, surprisingly enough, he let you. Which is odd, because he never lets anyone mother him. Ever." He looked thoughtful for a second.

"But he lets you. And I was glad because-" Sirius cleared his throat, and continued, his voice lower than it had been. "Well, James and Lilly are gone, and Peter's-you know- and-" He broke off again, as if uncertain how to express himself. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and forced himself to continue. "When I was in Azkaban, I realized that he was alone, with no one to watch out for him and make sure he remembers to eat and doesn't get too serious and all that. And sure, he's survived, but one look at him and I can tell it's been a nightmare, and I guess I just want to make sure that if- if anything happens to me that he won't be left alone again." The man was no longer looking at her, instead focusing his gaze on the floor, but Molly was touched by the loyalty and friendship he had for Remus, to tell her this, when it was obviously so difficult for him.

Molly sighed. Then she spoke. "He won't be left alone, Sirius. Not if I can help it."

He looked her in the eye, then, relief evident in his features. "Thanks." He said hoarsely, sounding like his friend had earlier. And in the blink of an eye, all seriousness was gone from his face. "Now, about this name-calling business." He said lightly. "Lupin sounds too much like one of those Slytherin gits from our school days, Moony isn't really appropriate, except for maybe Fred and George, but they've mostly left him alone, so I don't know, but Remus," He looked at up at Molly, "Remus would be perfect. It's a name, it's his, it's what he goes by, yes, it's absolutely perfect. Have them call him Remus." He nodded, then checked his watch. "Well, it's late. Good night, Molly."

And he left her completely flabbergasted in the kitchen.

Author's Note: Please do not get the idea that I loathe and detest Molly. Far from it. My theory was that Molly would not have had any prior experience in dealing with werewolves, and has only what views the society of the time would take on, and would be wary, possibly even hostile with one around her family, not, at first, knowing any better.

Thank you all so much for all the reviews, it is both very encouraging and rewarding to know that people are enjoying this. Thanks!


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen:

Molly stared at the man sitting silently in the rocking chair, his legs drawn up to his chest, his jaw clenched, his lips pressed tightly together. He stared unseeingly out the window, had been for several hours now. His eyes were glazed and unfocused, and every once in a while a shudder ran through his thin frame, shaking him.

"Remus?" She asked uncertainly.

He didn't answer, gave no sign that he knew she was there.

She tried again. "Remus?" Her voice was stronger this time, more determined. He hadn't eaten, hadn't slept since the battle at the Ministry.

He had seemed fine at first, claimed he was simply tired. But his actions had spoken otherwise.

And at first she had left him alone, he needed time to grieve, time to deal with what had happened. But he had only gotten quieter, more withdrawn, more distant. Now she was worried.

She had very rarely seen the man upset, and certainly he had always seemed capable of dealing with things. Of course, he had always had Sirius before, to make crude jokes, annoy him, and basically drag him out of his bad mood before it got this bad.

Remus wasn't one to give personal information to anyone, save perhaps Sirius. The fact that he had no one else he felt he could talk to only made things worse.

Well, Molly had promised he wouldn't be left alone a year ago, and had determined not to many times since then. She walked over to the man, and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Remus?" He looked up at her this time, and his eyes focused on her. Eyes filled with sorrow, anguish, fear, and even despair. He was lost, she realized. And alone, at least in his mind. "I'm sorry." She said, and found that in spite of all their arguments, all the times she had been absolutely furious with him, she actually was. "I really am." She said.

He swallowed, the tears forming, and blinked, trying to hold them back. "I am too." He said, and he shook, a sob escaping from him. And all at once he was crying, his body shaking as he did so, that side he tried so hard to hide coming through.

He _was_ alone, lost, hopeless, and miserable. Whatever hold he had on life was strained to the point where he no longer had the strength to go on.

She pulled him gently forward from the rocking chair and wrapped her arms around him. "Shhh." She said as his head fell on her shoulder. "It'll be alright. You'll see. It hurts, I know, but at least there is pain. At least he was there."

They stayed that way for hours, Remus silently crying, shaking, sobbing. And Molly stood with him, holding him up, there for him.

As he finally calmed a bit she led him to the kitchen. She set him down at the table and fixed him some tea and some soup. When he made no move to touch it, she sat down beside him.

"You need to eat, Remus." She said softly. "It won't bring Sirius back to starve yourself. You know that. He'd want you to eat." She sighed.

He nodded, and almost mechanically started on the soup. Not a word was said while he ate, and the silence continued as he finished the tea.

It wasn't until Molly took the empty dishes away that he looked up. "Thank you." He said weakly.

"You aren't alone, Remus." Molly said in reply. "Don't ever think you are."

He nodded, slowly, and managed a ghost of a smile.

Author's Note: Sorry if this ending seemed kind of abrupt, I was really having a hard time figuring out how to continue it or any other way to end it. At any rate, I hope you've enjoyed it.


End file.
